P'burg Board Makes District Mission Clear Goal Is For Students To Become Productive

October 13, 1992|by KIRK BELDON JACKSON, The Morning Call

It was August when the Phillipsburg Board of Education was inspired to write a mission statement for the district. Yesterday, the board approved a draft that evolved before a group of 13 parents, teachers and administrators.

The statement reads: "The mission of the Phillipsburg School District is to provide those experiences that develop and maximize talents, skills, and abilities, so that all of our youth become useful and productive members of society."

It initially read "The mission of the Phillipsburg School District is to provide each child with an array of experiences that will maximize their native talents and skills and allow them to develop self-discipline and the confidence to succeed, all within the economic parameters of the community."

But the group changed the phrase "all within the economic parameters of the community" because it felt it might set inherent limits on district efforts to reach its goals, according to Assistant Superintendent Tom Seidenberger. He said school personnel will now be encouraged to take the "proactive" approach of seeking means to fund whatever projects they want to begin.

Seidenberger also noted that the phrase "native talents and skills" in the old version was changed to "develop and maximize talents, skills, and abilities." The new phrasing was drafted after some argued that using the word maximize by itself directed teachers only to develop skills their students already have and not try to teach new ones.

Seidenberger also said there was a slight change made to one of four immediate goals that accompanies the statement. Goal No. 3 once read: "To improve the school facilities so that the current conditions do not further impair the educational opportunities of the students." In the final version, the words "do not further impair the educational opportunities of the students" is replaced by "to enhance educational opportunities for students," he said.

The other three immediate goals are "to develop more effective communication and understanding among the school, the home, and the community," "to emphasize the investment in individual growth for students, staff, and parents," and "to seek creative and alternative sources of revenue to compensate for a declining tax base and increased expectations for an improved educational system."